Back in 1993, an outdoor baseball stadium wasn't on the Twins' radar. There was a void, though. Many baseball fans yearned to watch games in an outdoor stadium, and Mike Veeck knew it. So the son of baseball's P.T. Barnum, Bill Veeck, put together an ownership group that brought outdoor baseball to the Twin Cities.

The St. Paul Saints, with their pig mascot and often-wacky promotions, were hatched in Mike Veeck's skull. Seventeen years later, the Saints no longer are the only professional baseball team in the Twin Cities playing in an outdoor stadium. And while the Twins have been excited about the prospect of playing their first regular-season game today at Target Field, the Saints have been plotting how to get a new stadium of their own.

I talked with Veeck the other day about the Saints, the Twins and more.

BS: You're a veteran when it comes to outdoor baseball. What advice do you have for the Twins?

MV: So far, do exactly what they're doing. They're responding to people well. They're getting a tremendous amount of coverage, which will be good for us. They're very accessible. (Team president) Dave St. Peter has been everywhere. So far, I think they're doing everything right. The only advice I have is: It does snow. It does rain. Welcome to the elements. Watch Mother Nature.

BS: Have you had a tour of Target Field?

MV: No. I've seen it from the outside. It's just beautiful. I'm going to Wednesday's game.

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BS: You no longer corner the professional market on outdoor baseball in the Twin Cities. Are you concerned that the Twins' move outdoors could be the beginning of the end for the Saints?

MV: Obviously, if we misread it, it could be. I am thrilled by it because why are you here? Everybody is doing a story on the Twins. There are more baseball stories than I've seen in years, including the Twins' finish last year. And that's good because we'll get whatever overflow there is.

BS: Do you change the way you market the Saints now that the Twins are playing outdoors, too?

MV: It will be will fun, affordability, access. We're closer, in terms of the field of play and stuff. If you're going to see the best baseball, you're going to go to Target Field and see the Twins play. But you're going go three times or 2 1/2 times or whatever your particular situation is that you can afford, and we'll fill in when you just want a baseball fix.

BS: You've been to Las Vegas, right?

MV: Yes.

BS: In Vegas, you see people handing out pamphlets on street corners. Will you have people handing out pamphlets about the Saints all around Target Field?

MV: No. (Laughs.) Our first new headline is: "The Twins, in case you haven't heard, have a new stadium. We have a new pig."

BS: Have you picked this year's pig mascot yet?

MV: (Laughs.) No.

BS: Did you pick a name for the mascot yet?

MV: No.

BS: What's your favorite nickname of all the mascots you've had?

MV: Hammy Davis Jr.

BS: Will you be amping up the imaginative and wacky promotions to set yourself apart from the Twins even more?

MV: No, I'm not kidding. (Laughs.) We're going to have to play to the audience.

BS: Would the Saints even be in existence if the Twins hadn't been a Dome team when you started?

MV: When you've had the 17 seasons we've had, I think there's something more to it. I understand it's outdoor baseball and smoking a cigar, but I've always thought it's about price. I think it's the lack of greed that's kept us around.

BS: But would you have even come into this market if the Twins were an outdoor team back in 1993?

MV: Oh, absolutely.

BS: What is the status of your bid for a new stadium?

MV: I don't know. It depends who you ask.

BS: I'm asking you. What do you say?

MV: I don't have a clue what to tell you.

BS: You still want to be in St. Paul in Lowertown, right?

MV: We need leverage. I'm going to threaten. I spoke to Rogers this morning. We're going to move to Rogers if we don't get a new stadium. (Laughs.) The process is amazing to me. We want to be right at the (site of the) Gillette building in Lowertown. It's at the end of the light rail. You could go right over to the other ballpark (Target Field). There's Union Station, the new bridge. The timing is perfect. We've gone to every single residential group, housing group — if you have a group of one or two people, we've met with that group. We want to be there. They seem to want to have us. They want a ballpark, as opposed to a stadium. It's 7,500 seats. ... We draw 300,000 people in 3 1/2 months, and the Wild does 750,000 in 7 1/2 months. So they're comparable numbers. And that's all St. Paul needs.

BS: Have you sold out any games yet?

MV: We've probably sold out our Fourth of July. Our fireworks display sells out early. The advertising hits next week. Where the drop-off is going to be is in corporate groups.

BS: A minor league team just signed a female pitcher from Japan. You signed Ila Borders back in the late 1990s, and she pitched a season with the Saints. Do you foresee the day when a woman plays major league baseball?

MV: I'll tell you two wonderful stories: Women in baseball is the most visited shrine, or installation, at the Hall of Fame. And No. 2, I was riding through Washington, D.C., to make a speech, and there's a 20-foot Ila Borders for the opening of an Annie Leibovitz show at the National Gallery. I think that harkens well for it (having a women play in the majors). I think it's going to happen. I think it should happen. It's a source of new talent.

BS: You have worked in the major leagues in the past. Any plans to try it again or are you strictly a minor league guy now?

MV: It is where I want to be. I'm going to Chicago Monday for the Cubs opener. I've never been in Wrigley Field to see a game.

BS: Any big plans for the Saints' home opener May 6?

MV: I'm having a really tough time because ever since I brought (actor and Saints co-owner) Bill Murray in for (a stadium-related) commission meeting, I don't know that I could top that. You should have seen the looks on their faces when he came in to testify on behalf of the new ballpark. They just stopped the hearing. They were like, "Hi, Bill." He didn't get a chance to speak. I'm like, "Do your job! Talk! Tell them we're pathetic! We need a ball yard!"

BS: Will Bill Murray be in for the Saints' opener?

MV: Oh, yeah. He'll be in for the opener. We're going to try and reach an all-time low, just like we always do.